EU optimism lifts oil prices
Futures rose as much as 1.2% in London as details on the EU measures emerged. The new fund may be authorised to provide credit lines amounting to as much as 10% of a country’s economy, a draft document obtained by Bloomberg News showed. Prices dipped briefly on reports that deposed Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi was arrested by rebel forces.
“If the EU manages to draw up the lines of a support package large enough to rebuild the trust of the market we expect oil prices to move up,” said Thina Saltvedt, an analyst at Nordea Bank AB in Oslo, who expects Brent to average $110 a barrel this quarter. Brent oil for December settlement rose as much as $1.25 to $109.64 a barrel and was at $109.29 at 1.03pm on the ICE.
